Page 24 of Ozma

Ozma rolled her eyes and stood, stretching her back. Jack didn’t bother to hide that his gaze was drawn to her chest with the movement. What could he say? He was a horny bastard. No matter how many fae he was with, no one truly satisfied his hunger since Tip. She crossed her arms and glared down at him, spearing him with a trace amount of guilt.Tip’s sister, he reminded himself again.

“I’d apologize but…” He shrugged.

“I’d smack you if you hadn’t just been at death’s door.”

“Don’t exaggerate,” he said.

Ozma swatted lightly at him. “Are you hungry?”

“Famished, but I need a bath more than food.” He could smell himself—old sweat and dirt—so he knew it was bad, and he hated feeling sticky. “Pack a lunch and meet me at the lake. We’ll have ourselves a celebratory picnic.”

Ozma lifted the chair, assumedly to return it to the table, and shot him a glare. “The lake with the undine?”

Jack lifted his lips in a knowing smirk. “Exactly.”

“Ah, okay. I see. You have a death wish.” She set the chair back down.

“Don’t worry, Blossom.” Jack flung the thin blanket off and stood slowly, testing his strength.Back to normal.“I won’t get in the water until she’s dead.”

“And I suppose you’re up to fishing her out of there?”

“I’ve never been good at catching fish.” He was going to test his magic. It flowed through him now like a second set of veins, and he was curious to see what he could do with it. Make sure he was able to summon and control it. If there were ever a time when he needed to use it, like with Mombi, he wanted to be sure he could. “Go on. The fare is up to you.”

“Are you sure this is a good idea?”

Jack bopped her on the nose as he passed wordlessly out of the bedroom. Was he sure? Hell no. But he was going to have fun testing his limits.

Outside, over-sized pumpkins dotted the field as a testament to his strength. Physical proof that everything had actually happened the night before. Excitement fluttered through his stomach.

The path to the lake felt extra long with the sun high, air crisp, and leaves just beginning to change color. Not because of his slight aches and pains, but because he wanted to unleash himself. His fingers flexed at his sides as he tried to conjure up a spark of magic on the way. The power beneath his skin stirred, but it seemed trapped.

When Jack reached the lake, he stopped a few feet from the still water. “Okay,” he told himself. Maybe he simply had to hold out his hand again. He scanned the grass until he found a small yellow flower with liquid droplets resting on its petals. Pointing his palm at the flower, he pushed at the magic. Nothing happened.

Seemed too easy anyway.

Grow,he thought at the flower, trying to be more specific. Still nothing.

Again and again hetried.

Again and again hefailed. It had come so naturally before…

Releasing a sigh, Jack plopped to the ground. “Please grow,” he whispered, coaxing the little bud to bloom bigger. A tiny bit of the pressure left his palm, easing the tension that built there, and the flower shot up an inch.

“A-ha!” he cried and jumped to his feet. “That’s more like it!”

“Amazing,” Ozma said in awe from behind him, and he whirled around. When had she shown up? “Do it again.”

Jack took a deep breath and, using his magic, coaxed the flower to rise even higher. Again it worked. Biting his lip, he closed his eyes and spread his magic wider. He held up his hands, the magic begging the grass to grow, and every blade woke as his power touched them. It was like a thousand butterfly wings brushing through him. Fluttering faster and faster until he felt numb to all other sensations.

Ozma inhaled, an impressed sound, and grabbed his elbow.

Jack snapped his eyes open to find the grass along the lake was nearly as tall as they were.Oh shit.“I guess I got a little carried away,” he said. But that was fine. It would take practice to perfect.

“Maybe a little,” Ozma drawled with a light laugh.

“There’s one more thing I want to try,” he told her in a serious voice.

“What?”

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